Telstra BigPond axes Linux mirror

Telstra will shut down its BigPond file library at the end of the month, citing "low usage" and limited appeal to "mainstream" users.

The library, which acts as a local mirror for Linux distributions and various utilities, was understood to have been operating since 2003.

Affected BigPond users criticised the decision to close it on the Whirlpool broadband forum.

That criticism was later amplified after the forum link was posted to technology news aggregator Slashdot.

"The BigPond File Library will be discontinued after June 30, 2010 - due to low levels of general usage and limited appeal to a mainstream audience," Telstra said in a brief statement on the library website.

"Large file libraries such as download.com and tucows.com offer a range of files and content we can not match, so we have taken the reluctant decision to discontinue this service."

It was unclear whether Telstra planned to unmeter access to either download.com or tucows as a replacement service for affected users.

A Telstra spokesman has been contacted for comment.

Affected users were being urged to voice their concerns directly to the office of Telstra chief David Thodey.